All of my ducks stopped laying?

[Sylie]

All 3 of my ducks have completely stopped laying, all at the same time, on the same day. One of them was laying rubber eggs off and on for a few weeks (3 rubber eggs over a 2 or 3 week period) but the others were laying as normal. I went out to collect their eggs 5 days ago and there weren't any. That is VERY odd but okay, I suppose it had to happen at some point that they all took the day off together but now it's been 5 days and still no eggs, not even rubber ones. I am wondering if it may have something to do with a couple of changes recently. First, they have had a lot more time free ranging in the garden area than they are used to and second, the feed store was out of pelleted food so I had to change to crumbles. Would either of these things upset them enough to go off laying? I find it really odd that they all stopped on the same day, it must have something to do with those changes I mentioned, I just don't understand. I've had ducks for years and have never seen this happen before, I've never heard of it happening before, I mean, one duck go off laying, sure but all 3, at the same time? One other thing to note, my cayuga is molting which I could attribute her going off laying but what about the other 2? What's their excuse?
I'm so sorry that I'm rambling, I'm just very upset about this, I'm worried there may be something wrong with all 3 of them.

 

[Alaskan]

are you on the southern or northern hemisphere? If you are hedding into your fall... that is a normal time to molt and stop laying.

Or..... now that they have more free time are they HIDING the eggs?

Or.... now that they have more free time, and the run gate is open longer, has a predator found the eggs and started eating them?

I wouldn't have thought the feed change would have been upsetting enough to cause them to stop laying. ... but maybe???

 

[CarleeAnn]

My two girls both stopped laying for about a week at the same time. When they started back up it was a two day difference.

I noticed one of mine was molting and the other I was clueless. I attributed the first “no egg” to a storm we had the night before- figured they didn’t get much sleep and their system got out of wack?

I wouldn’t worry too much. Ducks are strange and I think it may be common for really close ducks to be on the same cycle.

 

[Sylie]

Hi Alaskan, Thank you for responding, I am in the northern hemisphere and it's spring here (finally!!! omg!) Only the one duck is molting.
The garden area that they are in is fenced and they go back to their run and coop in the evening, it's a large area but it's fenced against dogs and other predators because...it is my garden lol I don't want wild critters eating up my family food, there is no food in it atm of course, or poo'ing where I'm going to plant, the point is, no, I have walked the entire garden area in a "search pattern" grid and there are no hidden eggs. Which also answer's your next question, I highly doubt that any critters are getting them since it is predator proof fencing, we fenced the garden the same way we fenced their run.
I wouldn't have thought the feed would do it either but I'm grasping at straws.

Carleeann, Love your name! I hope that it's just a matter of them being on the same cycle. It just feels so odd because in all of the years that I've had ducks and chickens, this has never happened, at least one of them would lay an egg. I'll just keep loving on them and switch them back to their regular feed asap. The new feed was the same brand and everything, it was just crumbles vs pellets. I just thought maybe they were mad because they like their pellets better than the crumbles. Protest! haha

Thank you both for responding!

 

[CarleeAnn]

Hi Alaskan, Thank you for responding, I am in the northern hemisphere and it's spring here (finally!!! omg!) Only the one duck is molting.
The garden area that they are in is fenced and they go back to their run and coop in the evening, it's a large area but it's fenced against dogs and other predators because...it is my garden lol I don't want wild critters eating up my family food, there is no food in it atm of course, or poo'ing where I'm going to plant, the point is, no, I have walked the entire garden area in a "search pattern" grid and there are no hidden eggs. Which also answer's your next question, I highly doubt that any critters are getting them since it is predator proof fencing, we fenced the garden the same way we fenced their run.
I wouldn't have thought the feed would do it either but I'm grasping at straws.

Carleeann, Love your name! I hope that it's just a matter of them being on the same cycle. It just feels so odd because in all of the years that I've had ducks and chickens, this has never happened, at least one of them would lay an egg. I'll just keep loving on them and switch them back to their regular feed asap. The new feed was the same brand and everything, it was just crumbles vs pellets. I just thought maybe they were mad because they like their pellets better than the crumbles. Protest! haha

Thank you both for responding!

Keep us updated!!

 

[Alaskan]

huh... Well... those were my only guesses.

It will be crazy if they start laying again when you switch back the feed.

 

[Sylie]

Keep us updated!!

Will do! Still no eggs today either though so nothing to report on that front.

 

[Sylie]

huh... Well... those were my only guesses.

It will be crazy if they start laying again when you switch back the feed.

That's alright, I appreciate the help, it never hurts to have a back up to what you were already thinking (or you backing me up on what I already checked as this case is). We tilled up the entire garden today so they won't be free ranging there anymore now and I still did not find any hidden eggs (thought maybe I had missed them or something on my walk through even as thorough as it was, you never know). Thanks again! If you think of anything else, please let me know.

 

[Alaskan]

nope... no other thoughts. The ladies do hate change though.

Mine had started laying. .. so I moved them from their winter to their summer quarters.... and no more eggs.

 

[Sylie]

nope... no other thoughts. The ladies do hate change though.

Mine had started laying. .. so I moved them from their winter to their summer quarters.... and no more eggs.

Oh lovely lol, we are moving them to their summer quarters tomorrow, I suppose I'll never get another egg ever again now! hahaha! Thank you for responding, I sure do appreciate it.